President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has cautioned against the use of unilateral coercive measures, saying they should not be used to undermine sovereign states.

Addressing the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly, President Nandi-Ndaitwah called for an end to sanctions imposed on Cuba, Zimbabwe, and Venezuela.

"We call for an end to the continued illegal economic, financial and commercial embargo imposed on the friendly people of Cuba and to remove it from the list of states sponsoring terrorism. We call for an end to the illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe. We are also gravely concerned about the emerging threats against Venezuela and call for the removal of sanctions and threats against that country."

The Namibian President also added her voice to the issue dominating this year's General Assembly, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In light of the findings by the UN Commission of Inquiry that genocide is being committed against the Palestinian people by Israel, Dr. Nandi-Ndaitwah called for an urgent solution.

"A failure to address the crisis in Gaza could become the moral failure that defines this era. We call on the UN Security Council to find a consensus and help put an end to this longstanding conflict between Israel and Palestine. Namibia's history is one of untold suffering marked by Apartheid colonialism and genocide. It is our painful history that compels us to speak out, not out of bitterness, but conviction of the power of international solidarity."

President Nandi-Ndaitwah further emphasised that reforms to the United Nations should ensure international law serves as a shield for the vulnerable, not a tool of convenience.